Future Colors
by Ryntaia
Summary: Almighty Tallest Miyuki takes it into her claws to inspect the Irken Elite so she can get a look at a pair of potential candidates for her throne. She may not be there for their reign, but there's no harm at taking a peek into what the future could be...


Tallest Miyuki was not in charge of selecting the next to take her throne. These decisions were decisions made by the Control Brains and dictated by the numbers within PAKs. As soon as the height counter went over five, the networks would begin to track them and their process. If they failed to grow any more within the next few cycles, their data would be put to the side. If the height counter continued to tick upwards then it would be brought to the attention of the Control Brains and to the attention of Miyuki herself.

She could not select the next to be Tallest, it was true, but she could monitor those who might succeed her none the less. The current next in line appeared to be a rather foolish soldier who had failed his exam to become an Irken Elite, yet always spoke in loud and obnoxious tones. Even his name was foolish. Spork, what kind of name was that for a ruler? Simply unacceptable. Yet Miyuki had to accept it, and had to accept that he was next for the throne. She had tried to talk to him only to receive a walleyed stare and a loud shout of affirmation. Miyuki doubted that the soldier had any idea what he was saying when he spoke with her. Most days, she avoided the ludicrous one.

She was aware, though, that Spork had competition that bit at his heel.

It was unlikely that the next Tallest knew about them, of course, but a pair of youthful soldiers who HAD passed their tests to become Irken Elite stood just a scant few millimeters below him. That was just enough for Spork to win over them but, she mused, they were far younger than Spork was and had time to grow. The pair were almost a crude fascination, in a way, noticed in the system repeatedly at the exact same time—these competitors had only rarely not been the exact same height. They had been born in the small batch of smeets that came right before Horrible Painful Overload Day, a batch that had been painfully small in numbers thanks to the system shutdowns and consistently undersized even for the average Irken. Many disregarded the entire generation simply as a footnote of a larger trauma to the planet of Irk, purportedly caused by one of the smeets from the very same birthing group.

Now she stood alert in front of said problem generation, watching them all practice their sparring. Most of them were trying to keep their eyes from flicking over to her questioningly; the Tallest did not visit just any training soldiers. They all knew the reason, of course. She could feel the entire room tense as long legs strode through them, grabbing a spear and spinning it around in practiced claws. Red eyes full of confidence but tinted with a hint of boredom flicked in the direction of the female Irken sitting against the wall flanked by multiple guards. Miyuki said and did nothing as he approached a smaller Elite, brandishing his spear at the trembling soldier. A fat, tiny little thing the opponent was; Miyuki wondered how such an eyesore got into the Elite.

This one, she mused as spears lashed out against each other, was the one called Red. A fitting name, she supposed. His eyes were a deep crimson shade and his uniform had been retrofitted from the standard magenta to instead be a rusty red color vaguely resembling blood. Typically Irkens weren't allowed to wear individualistic clothing but the taller one got, the more the rules didn't apply. He seemed to be aware of that advantage, as well, easily stepping over his opponent to sweep his spear under tiny legs. It was nothing more than a quick smack of the dull side of the weapon to send the tiny soldier spinning across the room; Red gave a deep chuckle as his opponent slammed into the side of a loose panel. It tumbled down and smack him square in the forehead. Miyuki quirked her head slightly; had he anticipated that?

A loud cackling laugh joined Red's chuckle; Miyuki looked questioningly over to find it was none other than the second of the pair. She realized that this one had been lounging among the other soldier's, chewing on a hunk of gum and leaning back in a way that made him less noticeable among his fellows. As he pushed himself to his feet to grab his own practice spear, though, Miyuki could inspect his full height towering over the rest of the group. Like the other taller in the group, he wore a customized uniform, drenched in lavender and dark violets to match his own eyes. This one was Purple, then.

He didn't seem nearly as coordinated as Red, preferring to toss the spear between his claws rather than spin it. For a few slight moments Miyuki thought he was shorter than the other tall Elite, only to note a visible slouch in his stance. When he straightened his back, he cracked his neck with an annoyed sigh. The same egotism that she saw in Red's eyes were reflected in Purple's, but the latter didn't seem at all invested in what was going on. He emitted a sense of disinterest, even…._laziness. _Miyuki laced her claws together and let them rest on her skirt as she watched the two circle each other. With the way Purple carried himself she didn't see much chance of him doing well here.

Then the young male moved.

Such speed and strength, she marveled. He landed a hard, brash punch against Red's abdomen, obviously winding his opponent completely. Rather than go for any form of strategy, though, Purple opted instead for a more full out assault. His once disinterested gaze had immediately transformed into a look of murderous determination, contrasted only by the wide and amused grin splitting his face. Said grin only widened when his opponent spun his spear around and casually blocked each and every hit with concise precision. Weaving the spear under Purple's arms, Red forced him to the ground and landed a kick on the side of his face. It knocked Purple to the ground.

Miyuki watched in wonderment. She had to put up with Spork, who could barely spell his own name on most days, when she could be entertaining these potentials? They had such fury in them, such pride and power. Certainly, it would need to be culled in the presence of the Control Brains, and they were likely not yet mature enough to understand their own limitation. Still, she could only wish that she could be lucky enough to see the wars these two would end up fighting against each other to claim their throne—all sorts of thoughts ran through her head, from subtle assassination attempts to public murder to elaborate criminal framing.

These thoughts stopped dead, however, when Red flipped his spear over and offered the end of the handle to the fallen. With no hesitation whatsoever, Purple grabbed the end and let his opponent heft him up. Miyuki's antennae popped up in confusion as she watched the fallen slap his attacker on the arm, walking off in casual conversation with him. Surely they _knew_ that they would have to be enemies. How could they not? Even without the internal PAK data to tell them they were the exact same height, they could look each other right in the eye. They walked shoulder to shoulder, for Irk's sake. The young fools should have been trying to scratch each other's eyes out at any possible chance.

"—allest? My Tallest?" Miyuki snapped to attention and looked down at the training instructor fearfully tugging at her skirt. She smacked his hand away immediately; it would not be proper for a smaller to be touching her or her garments in any form. He dipped his antennae pitifully as she stared down at him with bright blue eyes. She was proud of those; they were quite rare and hard to acquire ocular implants. Their rarity did a fine job intimidating her subjects.

"What is it that you need, Elite Instructor Yark?" She asked smoothly. His eyes darted away from hers, unable to meet her stony gaze. "Be certain to speak quickly and certainly, for I do not like to waste my time."

What a statement, she thought wryly to herself, when she was ducking her duties just to come spy on a pair of potential heirs to her title.

"N-n-no, of course not, my Tallest!" The instructor stuttered. His claws were held out in front of him defensively. "I-I was just letting you know that training is over. Are there...uh, are there any of the Elites you would like to talk to _personally_, by any chance."

Well, it wasn't like she didn't know they were on to her already. "Yes. I would like to have a private word with both Elites who just sparred. _Separately_, if you don't mind."

"Yes, my Tallest!" The instructor saluted her, nearly bruising his own forehead with how quickly he tried to salute. "I will fetch them for you immediately! Irken Elite Tenn, take her Tallness to my office while I fetch Red and Purple for her!"

Immediately he scurried off to leave Miyuki with a small magenta-eyed female Irken. She hesitantly led her Tallest out of the wide practice rooms into the narrow, suffocating hallways that surrounded them. Well, perhaps they were not so suffocating to the smaller among them. To Miyuki, it was like climbing down a rabbithole. Every few steps her head bumped awkwardly against the ceiling. Her antennae flattened irritably against the back of her skull, not appreciating the over stimulation in the slightest. The entire atmosphere of the training hall was suffocating in general. From down the hall she could pick up the sounds of cackling Elites on their break, coupled together with shouts from the instructor she had just left behind.

"My Tallest, we have arrived." Miyuki looked down absently at the female below her, only nodding in response. "M-My Tallest?"

"I know. I heard you. You are dismissed."

"Thank you, my Tallest. But that was not what I was going to say." Tenn replied hesitantly. Miyuki quirked one of her antennae in response, prompting Tenn to continue. "Many of the Elites were wondering if you came here today to, uhm, evaluate some of our more….stand out troops?"

"Neither of them are your Tallest yet, though from what I have seen, one of them may take that honor one day. You may address them by name, soldier." Miyuki said. She crossed her arms behind her back; the smallers were to respect their tallers, but these tallers still had a bit of proving themselves to do.

"Ah, yes, I see. Thank you, my Tallest. Your reasoning is quite just and true." Tenn glanced down the hall then back at Miyuki. "Word among our group is that you have taken an interest in the potential of Elite Red and Elite Purple. That the reason you can to oversee us today was just to see them. But…"

"But?" Miyuki prompted. This tiny thing was a tad bit entertaining. All smallers could be, if they knew how to watch their mouths. She wondered how much this one could before crossing the line.

"…But we all thought that the soldier Spork was set to be next in line as Tallest."

That did it. Miyuki's claws tightened together behind her back, lips pursing into a thin line on her face as she stared menacingly down at the Irken Elite. Tenn's antennae flattened out, magenta eyes wide in fear. She had said the wrong thing. She could very easily be dead in the next few minutes, if that. But Miyuki relaxed quickly, gazing upward and across the hall at nothing instead of focusing on the terrified subject beside her.

"He may be. That remains to be seen. Keep in mind, little Elite, that I am not dead yet. As long as I am alive then it is best to observe other _potentials_, don't you think?" Miyuki's voice was sweet but laced with a slight hint of venom. "Or are you implying something about my own health and wellbeing? I'll have you know that I'm still only 300 cycles old and in ideal shape."

"W-what? Y-yes…I mean no! I mean…I'm sorry, my Tallest! I did not mean to question you in such a way!" Tenn nearly wailed, pulling at her antennae fearfully. Miyuki had to hold back a snicker looking down at the panicked little thing. Smallers were so easy to rile up. Nothing like those who were tall. Tallers had ego, a sense of self worth that made them willingly to be uppity and snippy occasionally. Really, those who were tall were just difficult to deal with in general…

"My Tallest."

Speak of the devils.

She turned to look down…but not as far down as she usually did. The pair stood side by side, Purple leaning casually on Red's shoulder with seemingly no regard for protocol. The latter seemed to have a little more adherence to proper mannerisms, standing straight with arms behind his back and heels clicked firmly together. Yet his eyelids were still lowered in boredom, a playful and sarcastic smile flitting across his features. Miyuki could almost hear the unspoken quips being held back simply because of her rank.

"Elite Red." She said as she locked blue eyes onto crimson ones. Then she shifted her gaze to give a curt nod to the other one. "Elite Purple. I appreciate you taking time out of your training exercises to meet with me. I'm sure you are both very busy but I would like to have a word with each of you. Privately, if that isn't a problem."

The two exchanged a glance; both knew that this was just a formality and no matter how tall they were, they were going to have to defer to the Tallest. With an annoyed huff, Purple pushed off Red's shoulder and sunk against the wall. Claws gestured Red to follow their imposing leader into the instructor's office. If Miyuki hadn't known better she could've sworn he was pouting. She let it go as she hooked a claw around the fabric hanging off Red's shoulder to drag him into the office, pulling away to close the door and slam him down in the chair in front of her.

"You are a skilled fighter, young one."

Red's perked up his antennae at the unexpected compliment. His eyes carefully followed the Tallest as she hovered around the desk to seat herself in the instructors chair. A laugh bit at the back of his throat as she shifted uncomfortably, her oversized frame far outweighing the capacity of the furniture clearly made for much smaller Irkens. "Thank you, my Tallest. Your praise is appreciated."

"Before I was Tallest, I was one of the Elite myself." Miyuki continued as if she hadn't even heard Red. "I remember fighting in that very room, you know. Fighting with my fellow soldiers. The weapons were all much less advanced, of course, particularly during the Overload…but all of my most vivid memories are of practice rounds I had with those who matched my height. Krid, Evell, Ghuk, Ledu, Divos….all talented and powerful soldiers who grew to exceptional heights. With my spear, I mercilessly beat down each and every one of them without remorse."

"It sounds like a feat that would've been great to watch."

"Oh, it was. During one battle, I killed one of them. He believed their height superior to the rest of ours, despite the numbers saying otherwise—he was several millimeters shorter than not only myself by two others that I fought alongside. Not that this was an unusual occasion; us taller often tried to kill each other in practice." Miyuki searched Red's face for a reaction; she was surprised to find nothing in there. "You do not seem shocked by this."

"Should I be?" Red leaned back into his chair, arms crossed. "I'm one of the Irken Elite. I'm to become an Invader, should the occasion call for it. Should the death of my kin really bother me? Every soldier here is just that, a soldier. If I couldn't handle death and bloodshed then I wouldn't be here, now would I? I know the stakes."

"Then why have you not only failed to kill your opponent, but offered him assistance? The one you sparred with, I should inform you, is the exact same height at you. Down to the millimeter, in fact. I'm sure you are aware of this."

"….And you tell me this why? Everyone knows that in the case of your _loss_, that soldier Spork is to be the next Tallest. I hate to tell you but both of us are about 3.2 millimeters shorter than he is." Red scoffed. An irritated hum emitted from Miyuki's throat. "I'm not killing Purple, anyways. He's a good sparring partner. If I kill his dumb ass then all I'll have left is the short losers AND I'll have to put up with those idiots Zim and Skoodge on my own. Seems like a net loss if you ask me. So thanks for the advice, but nah. I think I'll keep him."

"If you don't kill him, he will kill you. I can see a great deal of strength and uncoordinated ability in that young one. He seems to lack balance but he has just enough bloodthirst to task himself with ridding you of your life." Miyuki explained, ignoring the odd implications of Red's wording. She had not expected much of the other one—he seemed lazy and distracted, but when he was fighting, the young Elite seemed to gain a whole separate personality. There was a spirit of pure aggression buried under that lackadaisical persona, and she could sense his lust to lash out when given a chance. It didn't seem to deter Red, though. In fact, a lopsided smirk had crossed his face. "When you are taller, you will understand that being friends with other tallers is not a luxury that you can enjoy. Take if from me as your Tallest."

"Tch. And why don't you ask Purple about his thoughts on that?" Red seemed to think for a moment, snickering under his breath. As if the mere thought of Miyuki's words simply seemed completely laughable to him. "I can assure you that I don't fear him. He doesn't fear me either. And sure, maybe we'll be told to fight for the position of Tallest one day, that's possible. But I have my solutions to that problem anyways."

She sighed and waved a claw to dismiss him, not even wanting to hear this so called solution that the crimson eyed male believed he had. It was obvious that his ego outweighed his common sense. All of Irk knew how bloody the assassination attempts could get when a Tallest was being decided on yet Red didn't seem to give a single thought to the most likely assassin that sat right under his spear. He simply gave his Tallest a salute that felt almost mocking, kicking up and out of the chair to stride over to the door to kick it open. Immediately he looked down, groaned, and kicked at the Elite that was lying asleep at the side of the door.

"Hey. Wake up. The Tallest wants to talk to your dumb ass." The lump by the door groaned irritably and waved a claw in Red's general direction. "Whatever, Pur, if you want the Tallest to kill you for defying direct orders then it's your problem."

"Aren't you just a helpful saint." Purple groaned sarcastically, pulling himself to his feet by grabbing at Red's arm. With a swift pull he was on his feet, rubbing his eyes as if he were a pitiful smeet. Red smacked him on the back and he stumbled into the office. With that the crimson eyed Elite gave one more jaunty, slightly sarcastic salute to Miyuki, and shut the door behind the Tallest and Purple. "Oh sure, bye to you too, dumb ass."

"You certainly lack a sense of decorum." Miyuki remarked dryly; Purple snapped his attention back up to her as if he had forgotten she was there. It was very clear to her that outside of battle, this one was far more absentminded. Not many Irkens, even taller ones, would have the gall to fall asleep while waiting for an audience with the Tallest. Certainly not when said Tallest had gone out of their way to make time for the meeting. Yet without a single thought this one had curled up and, from the looks of it, started in a bag of sweets before falling asleep. Even as he presented himself formally to his Tallest, he flopped down on the chair like some sort of thoughtless slacker.

"You think so? Instructor Yark says that sometimes." Purple paused to think. "He says it every day, really. Yark's a real puny dork."

"Not much on respecting your superiors, are you?"

"Pffthaha!" When the soldier laughed, he spat a few chunks of his snack onto the desk. "Superiors? Yark sucks! He's not superior to anything!"

"Well, he DOES outrank you in the practice rooms, but that isn't the point. You certainly are full of personality, aren't you? I saw you fight with the other taller today. You're not just full of personality but full of aggression and power." Her eyes narrowed to slits. "Why, I would say you could be downright lethal if you dedicated yourself to it."

"Thanks, I guess?" Purple seemed more confused than anything.

"Your sparring partner asked me to ask you a question."

"Why doesn't he just ask me himself?"

"Because apparently he thinks that you know something that I do not." She sighed. "He told me that I should ask you about assassination. When you plan to kill Red."

Purple stared at her blankly for a moment. Then, he burst out laughing, shoving some more of the candies into his mouth. "KILL Red? Why would I kill Red?"

"That's what he said about killing you as well."

"Yeah? So why are we having this conversation, then? What, did he not tell you?" Miyuki flicked an antenna impatiently. These two were frustrating, to say the least. "Spork's the Tallest next. But we're gonna be the Tallest after him. That's the plan."

"_We?_" Miyuki repeated incredulously. "What do you mean, _we?_"

"Sure. We. Look, Red outclassed us all in strategy classes. Even if I kicked his ass in a lot of the sparring matches. Besides today, I guess." Purple explained. He seemed a bit giddy now; Miyuki couldn't help but notice again how his mood seemed to change on a dime. Either perky and extroverted, or lazy and aggressive. "But we have a great plan."

"What IS this great plan?"

"Not supposed to tell you."

"I am your TALLEST and you WILL tell me what I want you to tell me when I command you to. And I do so command you to!" Miyuki nearly hollered. The sheer insolence of these two was starting to get to her. "So what is it? What is this plan?"

Purple shrugged. "Insurance."

"Insurance." Miyuki echoed. "Insurance for what?"

"Y'know, the whole…assassination thing." Purple waved his hand dismissively. "If I don't assassinate Red, and Red doesn't assassinate me, then we can focus on nobody assassinating either of us. Insurance! Then we'll both be the Tallest. It'll be way less boring to be in charge with someone else around anyways."

"BOTH of you as Tallest?" Miyuki had never heard of such an idea. It had no such precedence in the history of the Irken Empire, at least as far as she knew. Those who were close to becoming Tallest always warred with each other. If Irkens were the same height, then one of them would often end up deceased before the decision was made. The Control Brains even encouraged it by allowing a short 'mourning period' after the death of the previous Tallest in order to give all the candidates enough time to jump down each other's throats. It had been decried to be simpler that way. By having such a plan, they were intentionally disregarding rules and even more so, they didn't even seem to care. At ALL.

She couldn't help the laugh bubbling in her throat.

_Interesting. How interesting. How entertaining. _

_ Kinship_. She had heard of it, but it was completely obsolete between tallers. The act of alliance in order to succeed was not unusual among Irkens but it was unheard of for those alliances to be genuinely friendly. The casual way that these two talked about each other, about their plans, about how their futures were locked together without question…it was a resurgence of the long dead idea of keeping at the side of an ally regardless of hardship. These fools would kill themselves for each other, she realized, just so they could reach a childish goal of having a co-ruler _just so they could be entertained_. Of course they wouldn't kill each other. If they killed each other, then they wouldn't have any more fun.

She remembered when it had been like that. She didn't think it was possible that could exist at her rank. But listening to the smug self-assurance of Red and the blunt frankness of Purple made her wonder if it could exist. She was left processing it all on her own as the crimson Elite banged his fist against the door and yelled that if Purple didn't hurry up with the ass kissing, that he was going to leave and get donuts without him. The panic in those violet eyes nearly made Miyuki laugh again; instead she put her mouth into her hand and beckoned the Elite to the door. Purple didn't even give her a second thought, rushing out the doors to crash into Red's arms with a yelp.

"You spilled the beans, didn't you." Red's words were less a question and more a statement. The look on his face gave Miyuki the idea that he didn't particularly care if Purple had told her about their dumb plan or not, but he locked lidded eyes with her anyways. "Not that it matters anyways."

"…No, it certainly doesn't. You may have 'fun' with your strange little plan. Though how you tolerate each other, I simply cannot fathom. You two are incredibly annoying." Miyuki stood from the instructor's desk, towering over the both of them. "I will be taking my leave. I expect good things from you…BOTH of you."

With that she hovered elegantly down the hall trying to mask the smile that kept quirking on her lips, and noting in the back of her mind how these two with such high hopes clung together without a single thought. The records indicated that they had been born in the same batch, at the same height, and consistently grew at the same rate while always staying at each other's side. She could not remember a single taller with whom she had ALWAYS been with, nor could she think of one that she would ever fathom sharing her throne with. Yet this was a new world order that was coming at the speed of light, born from a small and faulty generation that had to survive through the Overloads caused by one of their fellows.

From those who had overcome such a challenge as nothing more than smeets, she mused, they would be tied together irrevocably. There would be a new world order coming to the Irken Empire eventually, one with two voices full of bloodlust and egotism willing to strike down anyone that dared question it.

A sharp grin spread her features. She almost wished she could be there to see it.


End file.
